Brittney Griner isn’t going anywhere.
The nine-time WNBA All-Star re-signed with the Phoenix Mercury, the team with which she had spent each of her 10 previous seasons in the league, the WNBA announced Friday night. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Griner, 33, returned to the court this season after missing the entire 2022 campaign because of her detainment in a Russian penal colony. Griner returned to form and was named an All-Star, averaging 17.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.6 blocks per game, in 31 appearances.
The Mercury, however, struggled and finished 9-31 on the season, last place in the WNBA.
Griner was detained after she was arrested in February 2022 at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo International Airport on charges of bringing vape cartridges filled with hashish oil in her luggage while returning to play for UMMC Ekaterinburg, the Russian team for which she previously played. Griner admitted to accidentally bringing in the cartridges during her sham trial and was sentenced to nine years at a labor camp.
On Dec. 8, news emerged that Russia and the U.S. agreed to a prisoner swap, and President Joe Biden later announced that Griner was freed and on her way back to the U.S.
Upon her return, Griner announced that she was committed to a return with the Mercury.
In her career, Griner has also been named to three All-WNBA first-team selections, was twice the Defensive Player of the Year and has led the league in blocked shots eight times. She was also a member of the 2014 Mercury team that won the WNBA Finals and is a two-time Olympic gold medalist for Team U.S.A.
